Finding His Mate... Ch. 07

Dante looked at his brother and quickly gathered Madison in his arms. He watched as Daniel wrapped his arm around Tiffany's waist and walked out of the bedroom, making his way to a secret set of stairs near his room. Looking around, he made sure nobody was around him and opened the door, letting his brother and Tiffany through first.

He looked around once again before closing the door behind him and following his brother down the hall. He watched as his brother stopped in front of another door and realized he had to put in a code to open it. Punching it in, he waited until the door was open before walking inside, listening as the door closed behind them.

He walked further down the hall and looked around as he came into a mini apartment sized room. He looked over towards the bed and quickly walked over, turning back the covers to rest Madison's body under them. He pulled the covers up over her and bent down to place a kiss on her brow. I'll come back for you. He looked down at her for several more seconds before turning around to look at Tiffany and Daniel.

"We have to go." Daniel looked down at his mate and watched as she twiddled with her thumbs nervously, as if she was afraid for something to happen. He looked up at his brother, who was making rounds on the windows, making sure that each one was locked and covered with drapes before looking back down at Tiffany.

Walking around her so that they were touching body to body with him in front, he bent down and looked at her frantically searching eyes, listening to her erratic thoughts of everything from him, to how she was going to protect Madison when she didn't even feel her wolf, to if he was going to be ok. He took her chin in between his fingers and mentally commanded her to look into his eyes.

"You will be fine." Tiffany looked into Daniel's concerned, bedroom eyes and felt herself gradually calming down. She looked over at Dante who was waiting for his brother to finish, and looked back up into Daniel's eyes. She watched as he slowly moved his head down towards hers, rubbing his thumb across her cheek as a way to calm her jumpy nerves.

Daniel bent down and touched his lips against hers, swallowing the whimper that escaped her throat. Bringing their lips together, he felt his senses soar once again when he tasted her sweet, tantalizing mouth. Plunging his tongue deep within her mouth as if he were a dying man and she was his life source, he moved his hands down to her slim waist and brought her body closer to his, rubbing his body against hers and coating her once again with his scent.

Although there was no threat of another wolf wanting to claim her, his wolf wanted to unmistakably assert their claim over her, making sure that no Were would ever wonder if she was claimed or not. Realizing that they had little time, he pulled back, placing small kisses on her lips before staring into her eyes. "You will be fine. I promise."

Daniel watched as she nodded her head before placing a kiss on her lips one more time. Releasing his hold on her waist, he rubbed her cheek and turned to look at his brother. "Let's go."

Dante followed behind his brother to the bedroom doors. Just before walking out, he looked back at Tiffany. "Do not open this door. I do not care if it is me or Daniel coming to beg for you to, you will keep this door closed at all times. When the battle is over, either Daniel or I will come up to let you out. And do not touch those windows. Understand?"

Tiffany nodded her head urgently, watching as Dante gave her a hard stare before closing the doors. She heard the electronic latches lock together, jumping at the sudden sound of finality, staring at the door. In the far distance, she heard the first door close as well and swallowed. She was all alone now, here to protect Madison and scared shitless.

Turning around, she looked at Madison's motionless body and felt fear creep within her. "Please bring them back," she said to herself quietly. She walked over to the bed and got in under the covers with Madison. Curling into a ball, she looked at the wall and sighed. "Please bring them back to us," she said quietly to herself again, praying that the Fates would answer her prayer for the both of them.

**

Dante walked out to the foyer greeting his men as he made his way to the front. Walking up to Rich and Gino, he nodded his head at them and turned around.

"Gentlemen. Tonight will be a night for battle. A night to show these rogues who real Weres are. Be fearless, be smart...and please, don't die." He watched as the men erupted with laughter and raised his head to calm them down. "Seriously. You are all my family and it is my duty to protect my family. These Rogues that we are coming up against will be strong, very strong, but we are stronger. And do not be fooled. We are going after Carlo Giovanni Russo." He felt his wolf howl in his mind and knew it was time. Looking back at his Betas, he turned back around to his pack. "Gentlemen...it is time."

Howling in the air, Dante commanded his pack members to shift, falling to the ground as he brought his wolf forward. He watched as his hands morphed into black paws and felt his body get bigger. Howling into the air once again, he looked over to his side and saw a white wolf.

Realizing it was his brother, he nodded his head in appreciation. He smelled the air once again and realized the rogues were surrounding the house. 'Everyone, go to the nearest exit and exit out the house quickly. They are quickly approaching and I do not want to be surrounded. Go now.' He watched as everyone quickly made their way out and signaled for his brother to follow him.

Walking to the back of the house, Dante found the door leading to the back gardens opened and stopped.

Looking over to his brother, he motioned for him to search the house as he walked out. The last thing he wanted was for the women to be left alone with a potential predator looking for them.

Once he was outside, he listened to the winds blow against him, whispering of a battle ahead.

He sniffed the air and followed a scent leading down towards the pack clearing, hearing himself growl as he inched closer.

He watched as a figure stood still in his view and growled louder when he saw Carlo standing with a smirk on his face.

Baring his teethed, he growled menacingly at Carlo, crouching in an attack position.

"Now, now Dante. There is no need for hostility. I am just here to take back what is mine." Carlo looked at Dante and smirked. 'This fool really thinks I am not getting back what is mine. Well he is mistaken.'

Walking around the clearing, he looked over at Dante and smiled. "Can you at least talk to me like a man and not a dog?" He smirked when he heard Dante growl at him and stopped walking.

Looking up into the sky, he felt power surge through his body. It was happening. He felt his beast wanting to be brought forward and chuckled. "Do you remember the prophecy Dante?" Carlo looked down at Dante and grinned when he saw Dante's face. Although in wolf form, Carlo could see the surprise that was clearly in Dante's eyes. "I guess you do." Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Carlo continued walking, looking back up at the sky.

"So, I guess you know how it goes. You know that there will be a time when the Were species will turn evil, fall under a blanket of darkness. You know that it was said there will be a woman who will bear the child that would determine the end to how this revolution will play out. If this woman was to fall under the cloak of darkness and evil, then the child will lead the revolution further into darkness and take over. Well, Dante, I hate to tell you that that woman is Our sweet Madison."

Dante digested everything that Carlo had just said and immediately wanted to deny it, but couldn't. Everything made sense now. He remembered his father telling him this tale, telling him that the fate of the Were species will be in the hands of a woman.

He remembered the whole thing. The woman would come from a broken house and face many difficulties in her life, but with her perseverance will come a strong child: a child that, just as his or her mother, will have wisdom and compassion. His father told him that it was the duty of the Alphas to protect this woman, even if they themselves did not know that she was the carrier of the future. That explains why Gino and Daniel were ready to immediately lay their lives down for Madison. It explains why Moe said she was a part of the revolution. It all made sense. Dante was about to contact Daniel when he realized something. 'The prophecy only held true if the woman was...'

"What did you do to Madison and my baby?" Carlo looked at Dante's face and laughed.

"You know Dante, to be so smart you are so dumb. Why would I do anything to harm Madison and the child? I more so helped her so that she wouldn't accidentally turn into a wolf and hurt her child. Sure, she may never have the pleasure of feeling her wolf for the rest of her life, therefore never being able to fully mate with you, giving me the opportunity to mate with her because you would die earlier from not being bitten by her, but that's about it. I guess in short, you can say that I killed her wolf. But don't be sad. With your death and heartache brings me strength. We are already somewhat connected from that bite that I gave her. It was a..."

Scratching his chin, Carlo tried to think of what he wanted to say, "I guess you can say it was like a vampire bite, just less lethal" Dante felt his heartache at the prospect of never being able to mate with Madison fully and what the bite really meant, and heard his wolf howl in protest.

Growling, he immediately charged at Carlo with murder on his mind, not caring what would happen to him. Carlo saw Dante's feeble attempt to get to him and moved to the side with ease, watching as Dante skidded to the ground.

Laughing, he watched as Dante geared up to attack once again and decided to put an end to Dante's misery. The longer Dante stayed alive, the more he will suffer and the less effective his own plan would turn out. He was going to die in the end anyway so why not kill him now?

Elongating his talons, he clashed head on with Dante, grabbing him around his neck and effortlessly sinking his talons into his skin, tossing him to the ground as if he weighed nothing more than a feather. Looking down at Dante's body, laughter shook Carlo as he shook his head.

Dante felt the blood leaking from his neck and his energy slowly draining from his body, but willed himself to stay alive. He couldn't stop himself from thinking about Madison being pregnant and he was not letting Carlo take his mate and his child. That was not going to happen.

Sucking in a deep breath, he rose up and clenched his teeth from the pain that was shooting through his side. He knew for a fact that he had a few broken bones from being thrown to the ground and prayed that he would heal up soon. He looked up and watched as Carlo continued to walk around the clearing as if he was waiting for something to happen

"You fool. Do you really believe that you will stop me from getting what is mine? Do you really believe that your attempts to kill me will work?" Carlo looked over at Dante and laughed. "Oh yes. I forgot. You do not want to talk to me like a man so I will not get a response from you." He heard a howl in the air and smiled. "Oh goody. It's starting."

**

Madison felt the cool breeze against her skin and moaned in content. She heard an ocean roaring in the background and smiled. 'Dante took me to the beach, she thought to herself.' Shaking the fog from her mind, she opened her eyes and looked up at the clear blue sky, watching as birds flew over her. She felt the sun warming up her skin and stretched her body. Yes, this was definitely what she needed right now.

Rising up, she dug her hands in the sand and stood up on her feet, closing her eyes to get her balance. She opened her eyes and looked around, expecting to see Dante and was surprised when there was no one. Running her hands through her short her, she looked out at the sea.

"Where the hell am I?"

"You are with me. And what did I tell you about cursing?" She stopped the hand that was in her hair and felt her heart beat faster. It couldn't be him. Dropping her hands to her side, she slowly turned around and felt tears form in her eyes when she saw her father. 'This couldn't be happening to me right now. This has to be a dream.'

"Nope. No dream. Although your body is on earth, you are here with me in spirit. Now stop thinking and give your daddy a hug." Madison immediately ran into his arms, burying her face against his flannel shirt. She wrapped her arms around his torso and cried.

"I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry." James held his daughter close to his heart and tightened his hold around her. He knew that she blamed his death on herself and did not like that at all. Yes, she may have made some bad decisions in her life, but to blame his death on herself was not something that he wanted her to do. He rubbed his hands down her back and kissed the top of her head. Stepping back when he felt her calm down, he looked down at her and smiled.

"Don't say sorry to me. There was nothing that you could have done that would have changed the situation. What is done is done. And besides, I like my little place here. As you can see, it is very relaxing." Pausing, he ran his eyes over her frame and smiled. "But look at you. My baby girl is all grown up." Madison watched as her dad surveyed her and smiled, wiping the tears from her eyes and cheeks.

"Yes. I am definitely grown up. That I am. You look good too." Madison looked up into her father's brightly shining eyes and saw something else in them that she didn't remember seeing when he was alive. There was something in them more than just happiness. She opened her mouth to speak, but stopped when she was interrupted.

"James. What's going on out here?" Madison looked up at her father quizzically when she heard a woman's voice and watched as a smile slowly splayed across his face. He moved to the side and Madison's eyes were met with the presence of a woman. A woman who had the same brown eyes as hers: a woman who looked exactly like her. A woman who was her mother! Madison watched as she dropped the cup that was in her hands and was immediately engulfed in another hug. So taken back by the moment, it took Madison some time to realize that her mother was hugging her. Wrapping her arms around her, Madison buried her head in the crook of her mother's neck and cried.

"I've missed you so much." Madison heard her mother repeatedly telling her something, but couldn't get over the fact that her mother was right here in her arms. Madison hugged her mother tighter to her before releasing her and stepping back.

"I've missed you too." Looking over at her father, she watched as unshed tears formed in his eyes and smiled. "This is why you are so happy. Don't think I did not see that shimmer in your eyes just a minute ago." James laughed at his daughter and walked over to the two best women in his life. Engulfing them both in a hug, he kissed the tops of both of their heads and laughed. Releasing them both, he snaked his arm around his wife's waist and brought her close to his body.

"And don't think I didn't see the glimmer in your eyes missy. We're going to go inside and you are going to tell us all about him." Madison smiled shyly and followed her parents inside their small cottage. She was immediately hit with the smell of food and heard her stomach growl.

"I see you are hungry. Sit down and I will make you a plate." Madison watched as her mother went to fix her a plate and quickly sat down at the table. She looked up when she saw her father sit across from her and smiled. She noticed that he was looking at her in a strange way and averted her eyes.

"You're in love aren't you?" Madison snapped her head up and looked at her father, wanting to deny his accusation, but couldn't deny the growing feelings she was starting to have towards Dante. Dropping her head in defeat, she sighed.

"How did you know?" James sat back in his chair and laughed, placing his hand on his stomach. Of course his little girl would find the love of her life when he was gone and then become scared when he acknowledged it.

Wiping his eyes, he watched as his wife placed a plate full of food in front of Madison before sitting down beside him. Draping his arm across the back of her chair he grinned.

"Why wouldn't I know? Sure I may not be there on earth with you, but a father knows when his little has girl found that someone. Yes, I am upset that I am not there to harass the hell out of him, but...I have this feeling that he is a good man. He definitely has to be a man who doesn't think with his dick if my little girl chose him."

Practically spitting out her food, Madison laughed as she watched her mother scold her father for his language and smiled. Leaning back, she thought of Dante and couldn't help the dazed look that washed over her face. She knew for sure that her father would have like Dante a lot. Sighing, she looked down at her plate of food.

"Yes. He is," she said, starting to idly play with her food. James noticed the change in his daughter's behavior and immediately became concerned. Looking down at his wife, he watched as she shrugged her shoulders before looking back over at Madison.

"What is upsetting you?" Looking up from her plate, Madison looked at her father and shrugged her shoulders, feeling her emotions start to overwhelm her once again. 'Why am I crying so much today?,' she thought to herself. Calming down, she breathed in a deep breath before slowly letting it out.

"I just wish you two could meet him. I have a feeling that you both would have liked him, especially you dad." James glanced over at his wife before looking back at his daughter, realizing why she was so upset. He moved forward in his seat and reached over to take Madison's hands in his, squeezing them gently.

"Look at me." He waited until she was looking him directly in his eyes before continuing. "Although we may not have the ability to meet him, we know that you have chosen someone that will treat you how I treat your mother. Yes, you made a bad decision before and yes, I wish I could turn back time and tell you more often that I loved you and get you the hell away from the man, but we can't. We have to move on and look to the future. But what I am going to need you to do is move on because I know I already have. Stop looking back on your past and subjecting yourself to your own punishments; by blaming yourself, when you are not to blame, is holding you back. You have a man that is here to love you and wants to love you with all that he has, but you will not be able to accept that love until you accept everything else that has happened in your life. Trust me. Whoever did you wrong will definitely be bitten in the ass by karma. Believe that baby girl."

Madison looked over at her parents and wiped tears from her eyes. They didn't know how much she needed that right now. They didn't understand how much she blamed both of their deaths on herself. Chuckling, she wiped her face and ran her fingers through her hair, smoothing it down on her head. She felt as if a huge weight was just lifted from her shoulders and smiled with the relief of it.

"I really needed that. You just don't know." James looked at his daughter and smiled.

"Yeah. So when am I going to see some grandbabies?"

Stuffing some food into her mouth, Madison shook her head and was about to say something when she felt pain run through her. Placing her hand on her stomach, she gritted her teeth. "Ahh..." She saw flashes of Dante in her mind, hurt and bleeding and stood up, knocking the chair down behind her.